Jay Doherty, the former head of the City Club of Chicago who is under indictment in the Commonwealth Edison bribery case, has been slapped with a $75,000 fine by the city for failing to register as a lobbyist for three companies.

       The fine is tied to unregistered lobbying dating to 2015 and 2019. The findings of an investigation by then-Inspector General Joe Ferguson were delivered to the Board of Ethics in August.

       Jay Doherty, who was the City Club of Chicago's president at the time, listens to Chicago Teachers Union President Karen Lewis speak May 23, 2017, at Maggiano's Little Italy in Chicago. (Erin Hooley / Chicago Tribune)

       The board determined Doherty violated the city’s ethics ordinance on three separate occasions by lobbying city employees. The companies Doherty represented were not named, though ComEd did not appear to be tied to the violations.

       The board voted 4-0 in September that there was probable cause to conclude that Doherty may have violated the city ethics ordinance by lobbying for three clients “for which he was not registered and never registered.”

       Doherty was offered a chance for rebuttal arguments but did not respond, according to the board.

       Last month, the Tribune disclosed a string of texts from Doherty to Mayor Lori Lightfoot as the ComEd investigation ramped up in which he told her that he had been “duped” by the giant utility.

       Doherty maintained in messages to the mayor that he was an “innocent bystander.”

       At one point the mayor responded curtly: “Jay, I really cannot accept these kinds of documents from you. Please stop. It is not appropriate.”

       A few months after those messages, Doherty was indicted in the sprawling case in which ComEd acknowledged engaging in a years long bribery scheme to curry favor with former Democratic Speaker Michael Madigan, who was dethroned earlier this year and resigned from the House.

       Doherty, who stepped down as president of the City Club in December 2019, has pleaded not guilty to bribery conspiracy charges.

       Madigan has not been charged and has denied wrongdoing.

       Doherty’s criminal defense team in the ComEd case said it did not represent him on the lobbying matter and had no comment.

       rlong@chicagotribune.com

       jmeisner@chicagotribune.com

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